


The sunflower needs the sun.

by Augustlover2



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 13:07:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17080880
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Augustlover2/pseuds/Augustlover2
Summary: What will happen when you love someone deep down but too stubborn to realise it?Mark Lee was oblivious of his feelings but his friends never thought he would take 4 years to realise it.The city lights,the tapping sound of the rain on the window and the smile he saw when he closed his eyes made him realised.That was it. That was the moment Mark realised how stupid he was for the past few years.





	The sunflower needs the sun.

Mark Lee was all about routine. His friends needed to ask him to join them for a hangout prior a week. He believed that it's not necessary to do all the things high school students did. Partying was not his forte. "If you cannot find Mark then go to the library" was what people said whenever he was nowhere to be found but he couldn't care any less. He was already content and happy with his own little group of friends. 

 

"Mark, why is the egg not round in shape but oval?", Donghyuck asked munching on his chocopie.

Donghyuck and Mark were neighbours ever since Mark and his family came back to Korea. Donghyuck was known for his wits and everyone loved him in their locality,which Mark couldn't understand at the first time. Hyuck always teased Mark and Mark thought Hyuck hated him,he then realised it was the way Hyuck showed his affection for someone. If it weren't for Jeno and Jaemin, he would've still thought of asking his parents to move back to Canada because of Hyuck. Jeno, Jaemin and Donghyuck were friends since diapers days and their bond was so strong that when one of them got hurt, the other two felt the same pain. Yeah, that's how their friendship was.

Donghyuck looked at mark anticipating for his answer.  
Mark just smiled softly at the ridiculous question the younger boy just asked. Hyuck always made him laugh, intentionally or unintentionally. Mark just find everything he said funny and amusing.  
"Did you finish your homework, hyuck? What happened to going home early?", He said while noting some equations on his notepad.

The two boys always spend time together and slept at one another's place whenever they felt like doing.

"I live like 5 steps away from your home,bro. And the movie starts at 10pm so i have 20 more mins.", Hyuck stretched on Mark's bed abondoning his homework completely.  
"But are you sure you don't wanna watch the movie with us?" He asked Mark.  
"See Jeno, Jaemin and Renjun will probably start flirting and i will be fourth wheeling them. Please come.",he sat upright and clinged on to Mark's hand.  
He knew Mark will never give in but he gotta do what he gotta do. Beings friends with Mark for more than 3 years and being his bestfriend, Hyuck knew all his weak points.  
"Please, hyung. Come and watch the movie with me." He said batting his eyes, which he knew will work on the immovable Mark Lee. 

Mark looked at the younger boy lazily and he couldn't help but to think about how beautiful Hyuck's skin tone was. Mark always had this habit of thinking something randomly out of the context but that very thought fluttered him and made him red all of the sudden. When he saw how Hyuck batted his long eyelashes, his stomach did this funny thing. He couldn't put the feelings into words.

"Are you okay?" Hyuck placed his hands on Mark's forehead looking quite concerned.  
"I-I am okay." Mark suttered and he realised he made things even worse.  
"Why are you so weird today?" "Whatever, come on it's only 5 mins to 10 now. I bet Jeno and the others are probably on the way." Hyuck said while packing his backpack.  
Mark questioned himself if he should go with him or just slept off the weird feeling he was getting. He looked at Hyuck and he realised how small he looked in that oversized hoodie.To Mark, Hyuck was so important and always wanted to make him happy. Mark thought that Hyuck shined the brightest when he smiled  
"Sweater paws." Mark murmured to himself. 

The universe might have the answer of what he was going to do next but Mark didn't have the answer nor the excuse with him.

He saw how Hyuck was dusting off the pie crumbs from his bed. His eyelashes was so long that it brushed his skin when he blinked. Before he could gulped down the uneasiness, he grabbed Hyuck's hand and that startled the younger boy.  
Out of all the people, Mark was the one who really didn't like skinship and that made Hyuck confused.  
"Mark." He said slowly. "What happened? Is there a coakcroach?" he asked looking frightened for a second.  
That was the moment Mark realised what he did. He snapped so hard,threw Hyuck's hand and ran off to the bathroom like there was a hurricane.  
"What the hell was that?" Hyuck asked away into the thin air.

He realised how weird Mark was acting the whole time. He knew Mark was the definition of being weird but it was a different weird that day. He wondered if Mark knew something he shouldn't know and the thought made Hyuck shuddered a bit. 

That night was the start of everything.

It was not only Hyuck that noticed Mark's change in his action. Jeno had been asking Mark if he was okay the whole time they sat at the school cafeteria. He suttered like he was talking to his father after getting caught for not going to chruch. Hyuck just sat there and observed everything silently.  
Mark didn't came over to watch the movie that night and it was already been two days since that day. He didn't even bother to text Hyuck a goodmorning text. That was something their small friend circle would consider being weird since Mark never skipped a day without wishing Hyuck. Hyuck realised that something was wrong since then.

"Mark, why didn't you come to watch the movie?" Jeno watched Mark carefully as the two of them walked out from the cafeteria for their next class. Jeno saw how Mark rubbed his neck, and that only meant one thing,Mark was nervous. 

"You know I don't watch movies when we have school the next day. Haha." It gave out. Mark gave out his nervousness and Jeno was quick to catch it. "But seriously who would have sleepover when it's just the start of the week days?" Mark said while he took out his books from his locker. Jeno just stood there propping himself on the locker and watched Mark with his arms crossed. "Yeah. Maybe you are right." Jeno shrugged it away as they both went to their class.

 

"Na Jaemin!"  
"Lee Donghyuck, why are you not waking your friend? Punch him." Shouted Mr. Kim.  
History was not everyone's favourite and Hyuck himself was fighting the battle of staying awake and dozing off. And it was not only him but the whole class. He sighed and nudged Jaemin with his elbow but that didn't do the job.  
"Last warning, if not, two days detention for you two." Mr.Kim warned adjusting his specs. "What? But Mr.Kim i am not the one sleeping. Why me?" Hyuck asked slightly annoyed.  
"Wake Jaemin up or else detention for you too." And with that Mr.Kim continued with the class.  
"Jaemin. Na Jaemin. Na fucking Jaemin. Wake up or istg." Hyuck whispered and slapped Jaemin on his thigh, that actually did helped Jaem wake up from his slumber sleep.  
"What Hyuck? I want to sleep more." Jaem adjusted his position to go to sleep again but Hyuck was faster.  
"You stupid! Wake up. I don't care about the class but we cannot get into the trouble of 2 days detention. Tomorrow is the party at Lucas's place. Detention two days means no party." Hyuck took a breath and looked at Na Jaemin. The mention of the party made Jaemin wide awake. "Shit! Did he really gave us two days detention?" Jaemin asked horrified.  
"Sir! Please sir No detention please!" Jaemin shouted before Hyuck could explain, making the whole class laughed so hard.  
"Waoh! Good afternoon Mr. Na Jaemin. Do you want the detention?" Asked Mr.Kim enjoying the moment.  
"I swear sir i will never sleep in class please sir no detention." Hyuck face palmed himself when he saw how Jaemin was embarrassing himself but he gotta do it for the sake of the party.

Hyuck was disturbed from his chain of thoughts when his phone vibrated.

JenoLee-_-  
3:24pm.  
The coffee shop after class.

The doorbell jingled and the bickering of two boys were heard.  
"Mr. Kim used to be my favourite but i might change that thought." Jaemin said sleepily taking the seat next to Jeno.  
"What happened?" Jeno asked stroking Jaemin's hair. He wondered how he managed to have such soft hair. "Your dumb boyfriend almost got us into detention." Hyuck said plopping down to the empty sit.  
"Did you sleep again in Mr. Kim's class?" Jeno asked with his infamous eye smile.  
Jaemin just nodded and sipped Jeno's coffee.  
"Where's Mark? And is Renjun okay?" Hyuck asked slightly concerned for the two.  
Renjun was down with fever and couldn't attend the class and that made Hyuck more lonely. He was always his crime in partner with their two snappy moods and witty mouths. Mark was already ignoring him for who knows why and that made things worse.  
"Renjun just texted me. He said he's already feeling okay and can make it tomorrow." Jeno said. "But Hyuck what happened between the two of you?"  
"Who? Renjun? Nothing happened,why?" He avoided Jeno's question even though he clearly knew who he was talking about.  
"No. Not Renjun. I mean you and Mark." He said.  
Hyuck wondered if he should share his doubts with them but it would make things more complicated. No one knew about his true feelings towards Mark except Renjun. It was not because Hyuck didn't trust the others but he needed time to come out of the dark. Renjun was the type of friend who could look right through your eyes and could sense all the doubts and the worries in you. He had no choice that one day but to tell Renjun about his feelings. If Mark didn't forgot Hyuck's birthday last year, no one would know about his feelings he wanted to hide so much.  
Jeno and Jaemin were too absorbed into the Beyonce cake they bought for Hyuck to notice anything. But Renjun was able to see right through Hyuck and Hyuck blamed himself for being a cry baby. Mark didn't actually forgot Hyuck's birthday but he went to Koeun's house, Mark's childhood friend, as her father had a cardiac arrest. Hyuck knew Mark would never do such thing to him if the situation wasn't that critical. But emotions got the best of him and wasn't able to think rationally. Renjun was there to cover up for Hyuck but deep down it hurted him so bad. 

The broken pieces were mended the very next day when Mark left a bouquet of sunflowers at Hyuck's door along with a Message thay Hyuck will never forget in his life.

"The sunflowers needs the sun. Take care of them Hyuck. Happy Birthday, love you and sorry."

Hyuck still remembered every word and the neat handwriting of Mark was still so clear in his mind.

"Lee Donghyuck!" Jaemin was literally shaking him, breaking him from his day dream.  
"Sorry. I was thinking of something." Hyuck laughed nervously and went to the counter to order his drink.  
The two boys looked at each other knowing something but didn't dare to day it out loud.  
"One chocolate shake, please." Hyuck said.  
"Hi, Hyuck. It's been a while." The older boy with warm chestnut hair said with a smile. "Yeah, it's been a while Johnny. How are you?"  
"I am doing fine. Mark isn't here?" Johnny asked away while cleaning the cups.  
Yeah that's how things always were. People always asked whereabouts of the other boy when the two boys went seperately. He didn't blame anyone though. The two of them spent too much time together that everyone started thinking they were inseparable.  
"Idk if he will be coming or not." He took a glance at the door.  
"Okay then. Will bring your shake in a while." Johnny said and went to attend the orders.  
Hyuck went back to his friends and saw how Jeno and Jaemin were literally eating their faces out. The cafe near their school was frequented mostly by the school students and College students,lucky enough since there were no adults. 

"Get a room." Hyuck fake gagged.  
"Hyuck you need to get yourself a love life. It's amazing to have someone you know." Jaemin said and reached for Jeno's hand giving a light squeeze.  
"Really? You three must be feeling like standing at the top of the world then." He teased them. Jeno and Jaemin just scoffed at Hyuck's statement. The two boys were in denial for such a long time until Renjun told them that he liked them equally and how he was so lost. Ever since that day Hyuck had been fourth wheeling them.  
"But why is Mark so late?" Jaem asked. Jeno could only shrugged. Mark told him he would join them after 30 mins or so. He wasn't even picking up his phone.  
"Renjun is coming tomorrow?" Hyuck tried to change the topic. The two boys were not able to catch it. Hyuck was glad that Renjun wasn't there for the first time.  
"Yes. It will be so much fun. Since Lucas is in a college now there will be lots of other seniors too." Jaemin was so excited at the thought of meeting the boys from the other schools too.  
"Aren't you a little bit excited? It's not even your first time going to a party." Jeno said, jealousy was evident in his words but that pushed Jaemin more.  
"Exactly Jeno. I heard Winwin will be there. Can you believe it? He didn't even go to any other party." Jaemin was really trying Jeno's patience.  
Hyuck sat there and enjoyed himself with what was going on infront of him. They did this quite often. The boys love each other so much and that made Hyuck happy too. He never wanted any of his near ones to know how one sided love suck.  
"I am going to think if i should let you go or not Nana." Jeno teased.  
"But let's make Mark come tomorrow for sure."He said quite determined.

 

"Come where?" The familiar voice asked.  
Hyuck swear his heart beat sped up. The voice he heard almost every minute, every day for so many years still managed to make him that way.

"Where have you been, Mark?" Jeno asked giving him the extra chair next to him.  
Mark sat down next to Hyuck, Hyuck felt his body heat even though they were sitting few centimetres apart. It took all his energy not to look at Mark. It killed him knowing that Mark came and didn't even said Hi to him. But the yearning was too strong that he stopped playing with the straw and looked at Mark.

Everything literally stopped?

'He got a new frame.' Hyuck mentally thought to himself and was on the verge of touching his face. His face looked extra small and handsome as ever but Hyuck act indifferently.

"Oh right, i went to the opthalmologist to pick my new frame up." "How is it?"  
He asked with a goofy smile. "It suits you very much, hyung." Jaemin said with an aegyo that made Jeno smile like a fool.  
"Hyuck, how is it?" Mark placed his hands on Hyuck's arm.  
Mark thought a lot about what happened that night and what he felt. He didn't had any answer to him and he was still confused but not talking Hyuck made him sad and gloomy. He lost his appetite and couldn't even concentrate in whatever he did. He thought maybe it was just the mood of the night, he thought of talking to Hyuck like nothing happened.

The moment he walked into the cafe, he saw Hyuck smiling fondly at his friends while twirling the straw and sipping his drink. It was already sunset and he just saw how wonderful the autumn sky looked with a tinge of orange spreading all over. The moment he looked at Hyuck, with the brown hair, the yellow shirt and that blinding smile, he suddenly felt the giddy feeling again. He stood there for God knows how long before going up to his friends. The nearer he got to them, the more his heart started beating frantically.

"You look just the same i guess." Hyuck replied without paying much attention to Mark. And that hurted Mark a bit. He wondered if Hyuck missed him or not but he did missed him so much. He couldn't blame Hyuck for his indifference, he avoided him in the first place and now he got the cold shoulder treatment.  
"You will come tomorrow, right?" Jeno asked Mark. Everyone was anticipating Mark's answer. Mark was never up for any party but this will be the last party they will be having as a senior year, they wanted him to come,just this one.  
"Well, I don't know. What will i do if i go there?" He said. "I cannot even drink and i know the loud music will make my headache come back."  
The other boys scoffed and even eye rolled at him, not even caring to hide it from Mark. Yeah, they were that annoyed.  
"Forget about him. Let's plan for tomorrow. Who is going to pick me up?" Hyuck asked Jeno and Jaemin, ignoring Mark completely.  
"We will pick Renjun first and will pick you up, hyuck." Jeno said.  
" What are you going to wear, hyuck? Shall we all have a theme?" Jaemin wiggled his eyebrows back and forth to Jeno and Hyuck. Hyuck laughed at how silly Jaemin looked right then.  
"I am thinking of wearing ripped Jeans and a leather jacket maybe. Nothing too flashy." Hyuck said as he sipped his already finished drink.  
"Oh Nana, help me with my makeup." He added.  
That sentence made Mark snapped his head at Hyuck so fast that it strained his neck.  
"You are going to wear makeup?" Mark asked feeling quite desperate to hear his reply again.  
"Yeah. I think i am going to wear a fishnet underneath my ripped jeans. So i need buy a new one." Hyuck replied as he looked at Mark.

Hyuck never wore makeup unless it was an important event for him. He first started using makeup when Hyuck was 14 years old, the first birthday Mark celebrated with them. It won't be too much to say that Mark was quite impressed with his makeup skill and he even thought Hyuck was beautiful.  
Everyone praised Hyuck that day and he said he would start using makeup in every important event in his life. Mark remembered every single details they told each other. It bothered him to know that Hyuck considered the party an important event, or maybe he forgot about what he said that day? Mark thought everything inside his head that he completely shutted himself from what his friends were talking about.  
"I will come." He blurted out.  
"I will come to the Party tomorrow." Mark said. Everyone's eyes were as wide as an owl. "You what?" Jeno asked almost chocking on his spit.  
"Are you for real Mark?" Jaemin started jumping up and down and that made Hyuck more confused.  
"I said i will come to the party tomorrow. What time is it? Can you pick me up too, Jeno?" Mark asked seriously.  
"Are you really coming?" This time it was Hyuck asking him with a small voice. He did this thing with his eyes that one couldn't help but drown in those dark brown orbs.  
Mark must be out of his mind lately, he brushed the strand of hair from his face and said," Yes, Hyuck. I want to know what partying is like."  
"I also want to know why you wanted to wear makeup." He said softly. It was almost a whisper and Hyuck was the only one who heard it. 

Hyuck and Mark looked into each other's eyes and tried to find the answers to their questions. They were oblivious of how their friends were judging them with a knowing look. Mark thought of how Hyuck's lips were too small and soft like a baby lips. He didn't even try to break their eye contact this time until Jeno fake coughed loudly.

"What is going on?" Jeno asked with a sly smile.  
"Is there something that we don't know." Jaemin chimed in right at the time with the same smile.  
"What? Aren't you guys amazed that Mark Lee is finally coming to the Party?" Hyuck said acting like he was fine after what happened.  
"Yes, we are so amazed but what's with the intense staring?" Jaemin was literally squeaking. "That's how we look at Renjun everytime he did something chummy." He added.  
"I don't know what you are talking about but let's go it's getting late." Mark said as he stood up from his sit.  
Hyuck looked outside the cafe and it was indeed late. They stood up and went to pay for their drinks.  
"Jeno and I will be going to Renjun's for a while. You guys can go ahead." Jaemin said.  
Hyuck wanted to tag along with them but he also wanted to go home with Mark. He missed Mark so much even though he acted like it didn't bother him at all.  
"Fine. Make sure he's already good enough to accompany us tomorrow." Hyuck replied to Jaemin.

 

The boys bid there goodbyes for the day and took opposite ways.  
Mark and Hyuck decided to walk home since the weather was fine and it'd be a waste if they don't enjoy the beautiful sunset. The two boys walked without saying anything until Hyuck saw a park. "Come on, let's race till there." Hyuck said and dashed off to the small park ahead of them, Mark smiled at the randomness and started running after Hyuck. Hyuck was always full of emotions and it made him alive than ever, that's one of the many reasons why he liked Hyuck. When Mark reached the park, he saw few kids were playing around and some older couples were taking a walk. He scanned the area and saw Hyuck on the swings, smiling brightly at him. 

Mark walked up to where Hyuck was and took the empty swing. He looked at Hyuck who was laughing so happily while he kept swinging with the help of his feet.  
"Is it another mood of yours to play with the swing?" Mark asked smiling fondly at Hyuck.  
"Maybe." Hyuck chuckled and the sound of his laughter was what Mark missed the most, it was like how the Jingle bells made a kid happy. The warmth he felt when he was with Hyuck was something he couldn't even described it with words. He thought it was stupid of him to avoid Hyuck just because he was unsure of what he was feeling.  
The sunset made everything so beautiful.  
Everyone looked happy and he was happy too.  
"The sky is so pretty today." Hyuck said. He stopped swinging a while ago and was admiring the surrounding around him.  
"Yeah.....it is." Mark said without taking his eyes off of Hyuck. He stretched his arms and traced the moles on Hyuck's face.  
"I have always wanted to do this. To trace this little constellation on your face." Mark said while he joined the three moles with his finger. Mark couldn't even think straight and he didn't even bother figuring what he was feeling. He just wanted to live the moment.

Hyuck was flabbergasted. Mark's hand was hot on his skin and he could feel the sparks burning inside him. It felt so good that he wished he never knew what it felt like at the first place. Hyuck knew it will be only for this moment and that made him sad. He had so many questions in him, there were lots of things he wanted to know. He needed the answers but he didn't even dare try to ruin the moment they were having. 

The two of them did all these things together ever since they were friends. They slept together on one bed, they watched movies together which always ended up Hyuck being asleep on Mark's lap, they did lot of things together but it was different these days. Mark was so focused on Hyuck's little moles that he didn't noticed how Hyuck blinked away the tears. The moment Mark looked up, he smiled at Hyuck, making the younger boy slightly flustered.  
"Your little Ursa minor is so beautiful Hyuck." Mark said.  
"Why did you do it?" Hyuck finally gathered whatever strength he had and asked away.  
"Hmm? Do what?" Mark was confused as to what the question was supposed to mean.  
He knew what he did would made Hyuck asked him unanswerable questions. But this time he was ready to figure it out and give him every answer.  
"You just traced my face, that's so not you, Mark Lee." Hyuck said slowly while playing with a leave he picked up earlier.  
"It looks so beautiful today. That's why."  
"Come on let's go Hyuck, it's already dark and i have homework to do." Mark said as he got up from the swings.  
Okay was all Hyuck could answer. Their remaining walk was solemnly silent. It was not awkward silence but a comforting one. Their shoulders would bumped now and then but neither of them thought of leaving some space. Hyuck smiled to himself and Mark did the same. For once,everything was now back to how it was.  


"Mom, i will be going to Jeno's for a sleepover." Mark told his home as soon as he reached home from school.  
"Is Donghyuck going as well?" She asked while chopping the onion.  
"Yes. 5 of us." His mother just nodded and continued doing what she was doing.  
"I'll be leaving in a while. I will have dinner at Jeno's." Mark half yelled as he was half through the stairs to his room.

"Why did i even said yes to this party?" He ruffled his already messy hair and sighed.  
Hyuck's room was just across his,he could see whatever the boy was doing and he saw how the younger boy was jamming to his Michael Jackson's songs still in his uniform. What a sight! He thought.  
He took his phone out and called Hyuck. Mark couldn't help but to smile at how Hyuck was searching for his cellphone, he was literally emptying his backpack.  
"Yes, Mark?" Hyuck answered finally.  
"Look right." Mark said. Hyuck turned around to see Mark on his study table waving his hand cutely.  
"You are creepy,Mark."  
" Yes i know but tell me if i should really go to this party!" Mark pouted when he thought of all the crowded people and the music.  
"You said yes and you know how happy Jeno and Jaemin were yesterday." Mark could see Hyuck was kinda irritated.  
"Yes that's true." He replied.  
"Mark Lee, everything will be fine. Now go and take a bath, you won't want to go there all stinky. Are you?" He teased.  
Mark just laughed through the phone. All this while, the two of them had been looking at one another. They always did this when either one of them couldn't sleep. Mark had trouble sleeping and talking to Hyuck would helped him fall into deep slumber and that's how they started their routine.  
"Oh, and i will be closing this curtain." Hyuck said. "Why? You never closed your curtain though." Mark asked.  
"Yeah but I need to do my make up and you shouldn't see it before i perfected everything." Hyuck chuckled and ended the call.  
Mark stood there and watched Hyuck closing the curtain.  
"There's no way out, i guess." Mark sighed for the nth time that day before he went for shower.

"Jeno, if you ever drink too much today i swear i will leave you alone." Renjun warned the boy looking at him through the rear mirror.  
"Injunie, you know i don't drink that much." Jeno defended himself.  
"Says the man who ended up slipping three times at his own vomit." Hyuck replied sarcastically.  
"Ew dude. Really?" Mark asked with a disgusted face looking at Jeno who's driving them to Lucas's place.  
"That was only one time okay. I was too absorbed in the game to keep count." He yet defended again.

The five of them were already on their way to Lucas's place. They promised not to drink too much and not to get into trouble. Renjun was slightly worried for Mark as it'd be his first time but he was also excited to see what will happen.

Mark was almost dragged by Jeno when he told he felt sick and didn't want to go anymore. Jeno shook him and even told him that it was just a party and not his wedding but all the bickerings were long forgotten when he saw Hyuck across his room with Smokey eyes and messy hair. Jeno needn't say another word because Mark was already on his feet to go.  
Jaem, Hyuck and Renjun decided to go for a bad boy look and it looked freaking amazing on them.  
Mark wasn't able to express what he was feeling. The aura Hyuck was carrying with him when he dolled up himself was to much for Mark to even think straight. Jeno saw how Mark was looking at Hyuck.  
"Stop drooling, bro. Now is the time." Was all Jeno said before he went up to the boys. Mark stood there and wondered what that was supposed to mean. He always thought Hyuck was beautiful but he believed it was because he was his best friend that he found everything amazing. But lately he did realised how things were and how his heart responded to every situation differently.  
He saw Hyuck coming up to him with a lollipop in his mouth. He looked deadly yet so soft. The closer Hyuck get, the more he looked more perfect.  
"You look good Mark. I told you to show your forehead more." He said while touching Mark's hair. Hyuck always told Mark to do his hair up,it made him look more sophisticated and matured. Mark looked amazing in those stripped oversized shirt with the ripped jeans and Hyuck wondered how Mark managed to look amazing even in such minimalism.  
"You look dashing too Hyuck." Mark said. " But did you always go to parties with makeup?" He asked.  
"Nope." Hyuck replied making the 'p' popped.  
"I thought of going beyond the line today. Everyone have been telling me to find someone." Hyuck laughed.  
"Oh" was all Mark could manage to say.  
The thought of Hyuck being in relationship made Mark's stomach churned. It kinda hurted him when he imagined of all the things Hyuck would do with that someone. Mark assured himself that it was only because Hyuck was his best friend. Nothing more, nothing less. But, the feeling didn't went away and the uneasiness settled long enough.

The smell of the drinks, the loud music and the crowded place was what welcomed them. They hardly squeezed themselves through the hallway and Mark wondered if it was always that crowded in every party. He saw many familiar faces and some of them were already knocked out, no one cares about underage drinking anyways. He hold on to Hyuck's jacket throughout afraid that they might get separated. Unlike Mark, the four boys went through the crowd in such a swift way, they were so accustomed to it. Renjun doesn't looked like someone who'd party much but he was mainly there for the free food and his boyfriends of course.

"Yo man! Wassup?" Lucas came out of nowhere and greeted the boys with his insignificant fist bump.  
"Waoh Mark, good to see you in another limelight." He joked and Mark just smiled at him.  
"Why is there no food and only drinks?" Renjun asked away as if it was a Normal question to be asked at a party.  
But everyone knew why Renjun was there so, not new.  
"Fridge,bro. No one cares about the food, go and have them all." Lucas laughed as he held hands with the older boy next to him.  
"Hello, I am Lee Donghyuck. Haven't seen you around here before." Hyuck streched his hand to hand shake the other boy who came with Lucas.  
"Hi, I am Jungwoo. I am new around here." Said the boy with a smile that showed his subtle dimple.  
"And he's my boyfriend." Lucas added.  
Mark was kinda surprised. Lucas was tall and handsome, almost every girl around their locality had a crush on him. Not only girls but even boys too. But he never thought Lucas might be a gay.  
They introduced themselves and the couple left, leaving the boys alone in the kitchen.  
"Mark, want some soda?" Renjun asked while munching on the cookies he took from the fridge.  
"Yeah. I will have some." Mark replied.  
When he turned around with the soda in his hand, Hyuck, jeno and Jaem were nowhere to be found. He scanned the whole area to find one familiar face but it was too dark for him to even see clearly.  
"They might be dancing in the next room." Renjun said Knowing who Mark was searching for.  
"Hmm i see. Why don't you join them?" He asked. "I came for food,you know and to beat the shit out of Jeno in case he decided to drink too much." Renjun laughed.  
Mark decided to go to the next room, afterall he gotta make the most out if it while he was there. The other room he went to was full of couples making out, literally sucking their faces off. When he was about to leave the room, a certain figure caught his attention. Mark stood there and watched how the boy grooved to the music.  
With that soft brown hair and black leather jacket, Mark didn't have to check to make sure, he knew it was Hyuck. Hyuck was dancing so sensually that Mark felt like running to him and held the boy close to him. He made his way to Hyuck but the light was so dim that Mark had to squint his eyes and the people dancing were not helping him either. The closer he got, the more ethereal Hyuck looked. Hyuck was so into his feeling that he didn't saw Mark coming.

When Mark was close enough, at that moment, Mark knew it was a bad idea for him to come to this party. He blamed himself for even thinking Hyuck wanted him to come, he mentally scolded himself for thinking Hyuck would accompany him the whole night. He should have known better why Hyuck decided to wear Makeup for the night. He didn't understand why he felt that way but he clearly didn't like how things were unfolded before him.

Mark saw that Hyuck was actually dancing with another person, no they weren't dancing they were practically grinding each other. He should've left once he saw Hyuck with the tall guy but he didn't knew why he had to go further. Mark knew that Hyuck didn't saw him yet and that made him wonder what would Hyuck do next. It took just a second for Hyuck to turn around and lock his hands around the guy's neck. And the next thing, Mark wished he never saw that. They were making out like the many other couples inside that room. Mark thought his eyes were playing tricks at him but it was not a trick. He wished! He stood there frozen, he forgot where he came from, he couldn't even find the exit door. 

He did everything in his energy to get away from that room and when he did, he bumped into Jeno.  
"Dude, where have you been?" Jeno asked looking around the room, probably searching for Hyuck too.  
"I gotta go. I am not feeling so well." Was all Mark said and pushed himself out of the crowded hallway and left the party.

Renjun stood there at the kitchen island and saw how Mark was not making eye contact with Jeno, he didn't missed the point where Mark was acting frantically. He needed to see for himself.  
He went to the room Mark just came out, he didn't have to search any longer for he saw Hyuck was making out with the infamous guy Hyunjin. Everyone knew who Hyunjin was and he wasn't even subtle about liking Donghyuck.Renjun knew something like this would happened at the party, he was worried and glad at the same time. He sensed that Jeno was also next to him and they stood there lost in their own thoughts.  
Jeno had his suspicions but it was clear enough to conclude what he was assuming.

It was already the end of September, the weather was not that cold but still chilly.  
Mark went down the blocks alone. Lucas's house was not that far from his. The area was quite packed, there were few trees but it was overwhelming to go down the unfamiliar road alone. He took his phone out only to see Hyuck's smiling face as his home screen, Hyuck probably changed it himself. The melancholic feeling came back making him more pathetic.  
He sighed,"I am happy for him."  
It was a lie. The universe knew, the trees knew, the stars knew it was a big lie but Mark Lee was still oblivious. The moment he saw Hyuck in someone's arm, his body went numb, he felt like he was ran over by a truck.  
He dragged his feet without even knowing where he was. He smelled the familiar oak tree, it was from the big one near his house. He couldn't remember how he reached home that soon. Mark already told his mother that he'd be staying at Jeno's and if his mother saw him, she'd keep asking too many questions. For his own comfort, he climbed the small tree infront of his house and he went inside his room. Donghyuck was the one who taught him how to climb a tree. Everything around him shouted 'Donghyuck' and that made his headache worse.  
He smelt like a stinky person even though he didn't had any drinks. The ticking sound of the wall clock was so loud in his ear that Mark had to block the sound away with his hands. He wanted to know who the guy was. Mark wanted to know if they were together. The only thing he wanted was Hyuck's happiness.  
"That makes sense now." He said to the thin air. "It's because of him."  
Before he could start torturing himself mentally, his phone rang.  
"Hello." He answered right away.  
"Are you okay, Mark?" The caller asked. He didn't even checked who the caller was but he knew he might sounded so bad that a random someone would asked him that. "Oh, Koeun I am fine. What happened?" He tried to keep his eyes open but his table lamp was too bright for him. Mark wanted to laugh at himself for feeling so low and pathetic at the moment.  
"I called you because my mother wanted to invite you and your family for dinner tomorrow." She replied cheerfully.  
Mark wanted to sleep and nothing more. He wasn't even paying attention to what Koeun was talking about, he could made out few words but that was it. He knew it had to be for another family dinner.  
"Okay. I will tell my family tomorrow. Goodnight Koeun." He said and ended the call, not even waiting for a reply.  
Mark always had sleepless night but this time it was different. Everything he saw kept playing on repeat, he ended up staying the whole night up. It would be a lie if he said he didn't exactly wait for Hyuck to call him or maybe text him atleast. To Mark,everything was new and challenging, he couldn't even decipher what he was feeling. He wondered why it affected him very much but being the ignorant one he was, he believed he was just scared to lose his bestfriend.  
Yeah, his only bestfriend.

12:30pm.

"How much did he drank last night?" Jaemin asked the two boys as the three of them sat in a circle around the sleeping boy. "Who knows! I was with you the whole time and Renjun was busy with his cookies." Jeno said patting Renjun's head with such fondness.  
"So he was with Mark?" Jaemin sipped his coffee." But didn't Mark left a bit early?" He further asked.  
Hearing that Renjun and Jeno looked at each other making Jaemin slightly confused. "You didn't know what happened?" Jeno asked.  
"No. After you went to bring the drinks I ended up playing darts with the boys from my class." Jaemin said.  
It was true that Jeno left Jaemin for a while to bring them few more drinks. That was when he bumped into Mark and saw what happened there. Jeno and Renjun didn't even brought the topic up when they left the party because they thought it would be better for Mark and Hyuck to figure it out alone when Hyuck was sober enough.  
"Let's talk later, Nana." Was what Renjun said and Jaemin understood right away that something was off.  
"Let him sleep." Jeno said and walked away. In cue, the two followed and left the room.  
They crashed at Jeno's place since parents were not home for work. It was late and they went to sleep without saying or asking anything. Hyuck did asked Mark whereabouts and that was it.  
The three boys plopped down in the living room still feeling tired from the last night. Jaemin wanted to wake Hyuck up to ask about what happened yesterday but he knew what to do better than that.  
"Now tell me." Jaem said crossing his arms sitting lazily on the couch.  
Jeno laid down on his lap while Renjun looked at Jeno, waiting for him to start talking. "Hyuck kissed Hyunjin." Jeno said.  
"What??? Did Hyunjin forced him?" Jaem asked feeling triggered. "No, hyuck enjoyed every bit of it." Renjun added.  
"By any chance did Mark saw what happened?" Jaemin asked carefully.  
The three of them looked at each other checking one another's expression. Everyone knew that Hyuck liked Mark ever since the start and they also knew how Mark was fighting his feelings alone. But even though they knew about this, no one said anything about their little secret. The two of them should knew by now but they both didn't knew how to look at the situation from a bigger picture. They both thought their little secret of crushing on each other was safe.  
The joke was on them, even Mark's mother knew something about it.  
"So, you guys knew about it too." Renjun said slowly. "Isn't it quite obvious. These two." Jeno chuckled.  
"I knew about Hyuck from the beginning but it seems like Mark realised his feelings lately." He added.  
Jaemin was about to say something when Hyuck came down still in his white t-shirt and the ripped jeans.  
"Why did you let me sleep with this stuffy jeans?" He rubbed his eyes furiously.  
"That's what you get for drinking too much." Renjun said. "There's a headache pill on the counter."

 

"I bet your hangover is much worse than the others." He added. "I didn't drink that much. Idk why i feel so exhausted." Hyuck said as he took the pills.  
"Where is Mark?" Hyuck asked coming back to where the boys were. "Home." Jeno said. He didn't want to say anything because he was afraid he might spilled everything to Hyuck. Jeno was the closest one to Mark beside Hyuck and he didn't wanted to hurt Mark just like that. Why do they have to be so blind?  
"He didn't even text me." Hyuck murmured and sat next to Renjun.  
"Let's eat something, i am starving." Jaem said playing with Jeno's hair. "Let's cook guys. I am broke so no take out." He added.  
"Wait." Hyuck said grabbing Renjun's arm. "Did i kissed someone yesterday?" He asked horrified.  
He believed he wasn't that drank but he couldn't grasped what happened last night. He remembered kissing someone vividly but Hyuck couldn't remember who that person was.  
Suddenly, Hyuck turned pale like a sheet of paper and eyes wide opened he asked, "D-Did i kissed Mark?" He turned to Renjun for an answer but Renjun sat there without saying anything.  
Lucas gave him the drink last night and it was too strong for him. Hyuck realised he didn't even met Mark after he left the kitchen island. He felt fear all of the sudden, the thought of doing something reckless that might hurt Mark was making him restless. He was not ready to let Mark knew of his crush.  
"You and Hyunjin kissed and everyone's talking about you two." Jeno said calmly as he sat up.  
Hyuck stood frozen. Wtf! This is worst.  
Did he saw it? What if he did? What if he thought otherwise? No. No. He might not have seen it. Lee Donghyuck you so dead.  
His brain wheeled so fast and all these questions made his hangover worst. He looked at Renjun hopefully for an answer but he got nothing.  
"I didn't saw what happened." Jaem said. That actually helped Hyuck to calm himself down, Mark and Jaemin might be together then,he thought but he wished. "Mark saw it too. I am still sad i wasn't there to witness it too." Jaem added earning a slap from Jeno.  
Fuck.  
Mark saw it too.  
Mark saw it too.  
Mark saw it too.  
Mark saw it too.  
Mark saw it too.  
It was all Hyuck heard. Everything turned black and he couldn't even breathe. He knew it was a bad thing but he didn't knew what to do exactly. He couldn't even cry out since his friends didn't knew about his feelings. But people said that one cannot hide their emotions unless it was fake. Hyuck was not able to control himself. He thought of all the possibilities, he knew Mark would assumed things wrongly and he thought how stupid he was to leave Mark's side.  
He didn't want to let down the walls he built for the past years, he was scared. He liked Mark with all his heart. He didn't want to lose him but knowing Mark, Hyuck was sure that Mark would distant himself from him. He couldn't afford that.  
Renjun hugged him without saying anything.  
Nomatter how hard Hyuck tried to keep his little secret to himself, it was impossible. The only thing he wanted to do was to talk to Mark but he was just a coward who liked his best friend.

 

No one bothered Mark when morning came. Probably his mother might assumed that he was at Jeno's place. It was already 5 in the morning and he didn't even slept for a minute. He wanted to do nothing but wrapped himself up in the blankets until it swallowed him. Everything was bittersweet,never had he thought of the possibility of Hyuck having a boyfriend. Mark knew he was being selfish, he wanted Hyuck to himself. The sunrays crept inside the room through the thin white curtains, the birds chirped and he could smell her mother's coffee from his room. Mark was not a morning person and he didn't knew what it felt like to feel the sunrays on his face first thing in the morning. It made him missed Donghyuck more. He didn't even knew if Hyuck was in a relationship or not but what he saw last night somehow explained everything.

Mark got up from his bed knowing it won't be possible to sleep through whatever he was feeling. He didn't had any drink yet his throat was dry.  
No water.  
He had to go downstairs to drink something but he was scared of facing his mother. One person can hide whatever he was feeling from everybody but not from their parents. Mark knew his mother would sensed everything and would asked him about it. He didn't had any choice and never had he thought he'd be making a beeline in his own kitchen.  
He sighed, relieved that there was no one in the kitchen. During this time, he wished his brother was at home. Taeyong would understand whatever he was feeling and he would feel somehow at peace.  
"When did you come back?" Mark mother asked quite shocked when she saw her son inside the kitchen.  
Mark mentally cursed himself. He had to face his mother but he looked like a zombie.  
"I came back yesterday. I was not feeling well." He replied with his back facing his mother.  
His mother didn't failed to note Mark's slumped shoulder. His voice sounded so hoarsed like he cried the whole night.  
"What happened,dear?" Mark heard his mother asked while coming towards him.  
"Is everything okay?" This time Mark felt his mother's hand on his shoulder.  
That made the walls crumbled. He sobbed. Last night was the worst he had so far but he hardly cried. His mother's touch made him feel like a lost boy and had no choice but to let it out.  
Mrs. Lee didn't said anything, she just hugged Mark and rubbed his back. It took him long to start talking.  
"I don't know why i am like this mom." He said still Crying. His mother remembered how he came back home crying with a dead butterfly in his hand when he was 7 years old. She knew her youngest seldom showed his feelings until it was something that really broke him.  
She let her son in the living room and gave him a glass of water.  
"It's okay, Minhyung. Want to share with me?" She rubbed his back.  
Mark felt it soothing. He wondered why he couldn't cry the last night but ge felt good after he let it out. He thought the problem would be only his share and would solved it himself. Now, he had to tell his mother, maybe he would find some answer too?  
"Donghyuck is in a relationship." He said with his head down. He felt so pathetic all over again. He knew he was being ridiculous, it was bound to happen someday but he didn't knew it would happen too soon.  
"Did he tell you that himself?" His mother asked. Mark wiped off his tears and looked at his mother. He swear he saw a small smile on his mother's face but it was soon gone. "No. But i saw it." He said.  
"Saw what, my dear?" She asked. She pushed all the soft buttons in his body and he told her everything, every single thing. His mother listened to him attentively and didn't uttered a word.  
When he was done, she said, "First of all, Minhyung i am happy that you decided to break rules and went out without telling me, it makes you more humane." She chuckled and continued. "And Donghyuck is your bestfriend. Even if he was in a relationship, shouldn't you be happy for him? He won't leave you. You will be still his best friend and will hang out with you. If that's what makes you so sad then don't worry but if there's another reason why you feel in such a way then sort your feelings out, my son." She said and kissed his head. He was left there alone battling with his thoughts. He completely forgot about telling his mother about the dinner.  
He went to his mother once again, he saw how she hummed a happy song to herself.  
"Mom." He called. His mother twirled around with a flower in her hand and said, "Yes, did you already sort it out?" She asked. Mark told her about the dinner and asked if he could skipped it.  
"No, it's better to go out. I know you would locked up in your room." She said.  
Mark had no choice.

Lee Donghyuck and Jeno were sitting in their living room and was watching a movie. None of them paid attention to the movie, it was just played to ease the tension. Renjun and Jaemin were cooking for the four of them. It had been an hour since Hyuck woke up and an hour already since he didn't said anything.  
"What do you think about, Mark?" Jaemin asked peeling the onion.  
"What about him?" Renjun replied.  
They all knew Mark liked Hyuck too, and that more than friends. Hyuck was dumb to see through Mark's smile and the way he looked at him. Mark was a fool for not catching all the signals Hyuck sent ever since the start of their friendship.  
"Mark looked at Hyuck like we did at Jeno." Jaem said. Renjun couldn't help but laughed at the cuteness of the other boy. "I swear i look at you more lovingly than that." Renjun joked. They both laughed.  
"But seriously, Mark needs to realise his feelings soon." Renjun said. "Hyuck has been thinking of moving on from his one side love and that's why he let Hyunjin in slowly."  
"Hyuck told you everything?" Jaemin asked. He wasn't judging, he was not mad or anything but he was curious.  
"Yes, Hyuck wanted to keep it as a secret but i somehow managed to catch it." Renjun said as he stirred the soup.  
"We all know Mark like Hyuck more than friends too, I think we need to push him." Jaemin said.

In the other room, Jeno started small talk with Hyuck. Hyuck responded but soulless. Jeno called Mark a few minutes ago without letting Hyuck knew about it. Mark told him about the family dinner and how he couldn't come over. He promised he would come to visit on sunday. Jeno just said okay and asked him to come for sure.  
When he came back, he saw Hyuck hugging the tiger plushie tightly and wandering his eyes here and there.  
He looked so sad.  
"Mark said he will come tomorrow." Jeno said looking at the television screen.  
The mentioned of the name made Hyuck looked at Jeno. "Did he say anything else?" Jeno shook his head. It was back to how it was before, silence.  
"What will i do when i see him?" Hyuck asked not looking at Jeno.  
Jeno wondered if the Question was for him or not. But he replied," Tell him. Let him know."  
Hyuck looked at him as if Jeno grew another head. "No, i cannot do that." Hyuck said. "That would make things more complicated. He would stop talking to me." He added.  
"Then is it better to let him think you are in a relationship?" Jeno asked.  
Jeno saw how Hyuck was shaking his legs. He had to ask him that for their sake.  
"Should i really tell him?" Hyuck asked again. "I think that's the best thing to do but it's upto you, Hyuck." Jeno said.  
Hyuck had one night to think about what he should do.

/p>

The ride to Koeun's house was silent. Mark didn't made any sound and his mother was focusing on the road.  
He took out his earphones and listened to the music he recently downloaded. Mark knew he overacted and made himself sad. The city lights were bright and beautiful, he saw how the building were zoomed by and the streets were alive. He took his phone out and shuffled the music, 'Lucky Strike' started playing. The song was his favourite after Hyuck made him listened to it. Everything around him were a constant reminder of Donghyuck and he wished he had the courage to call him then but Mark needed to gather up all his lost strength to meet him the next day.  
The streets were busy and his mother was saying something he couldn't figure out. The traffic was heavy and it started raining. The weather forecasted about light rain and sudden dropped in the weather. Mark didn't like rain but Hyuck was so fond of it. Yeah, everything was all about Hyuck. He sighed loudly and played 'Sunflower' by Post Malone and  
He scrolled through his gallery, the storage was almost full with Hyuck's picture. He kept on zooming in and zooming out the photos until one picture caught his eye. He wore a yellow shirt which was initially Mark's but it was his now. Hyuck smiled brightly at the camera showing his hands that were full of paints. Mark was smiling fondly and made it his new lockscreen. His mother was looking at him but he was busy in his own world.  
The rain was tapping down the window and he decided to sleep for a while as he was quite fatigued for staying up the whole night.  
Just when he closed his eyes, the brightest smile flashed in front of him. The smile he saw almost everyday, those dark brown orbs and his little Ursa minor.  
Mark shot his eyes wide open, quite shocked. His heart was beating so hard, he could felt his palms palpitating and the hair at the back of his nape stood. He never thought it would be like that, he always wanted Hyuck to be happy but his excuse was always the same old one word, 'bestfriend'. But,it proved him wrong, it was wrong all over. He realised it a little too late.  
I like Donghyuck. He thought. I realised it too late. He got someone now, he closed his eyes yet again taking a deep breath.  
"Mom, i know why i felt like this." Mark said still closing his eyes and evening out his breathing.  
"Good, I knew you would sort it out somehow." She said with a knowing smile.  
Mark felt his heart little lighter and he even enjoyed the dinner.

 

Lee Donghyuck slept hardly last night. He was the first one to woke up and he even made coffee for his friends. They had school the next day, he had to face Mark on daily basis again so he had to do something to make things okay. After tossing and turning he made up his mind. Renjun, Jeno and Jaemin helped him a lot. He talked to Hyunjin last night on the phone and said he had someone he liked for so long. Hyunjin was an understanding guy and he wished Donghyuck happiness. They agreed to be friends and not to be awkward around one another. Hyuck felt sorry but he had to do for his own sake.  
Hyuck decided to confess his feelings to Mark. He was ready to face anything that was about to happen. 

On the other hand, Mark was ready to ask about the incident. His mother told him to hear Hyuck's story and to conclude everything. He was sure that Hyuck was dating that guy but he decided to ask to stop all the sufferings.  
He got ready to go to Jeno's. He stopped by the bakery which they frequently visited and bought their favorites.  
Mark walked down the familiar streets, the weather was still cold after the rain. He was nervous,he had to face the boy after he finally realised his feelings for him. It would be difficult for him to face him without spilling everything.  
Mark wanted to turn around go back to his home but he still dragged himself at his friend's. His heart was beating frantically all the way and he knew it won't stopped easily.  
This is sick. He thought to himself.

Renjun prepared lunch for them and they were lounging around the living room after having it. Jeno was busy picking movies for the night and Jaemin just laid there on the couch scrolling through his phone.  
"I don't want to go to school tomorrow." Jeno said throwing away a movie out of nowhere.  
"No one wants to go to school sweetheart." Jaemin said with a smile. Yes, Monday was always dreadful to everyone but in few months they'd be graduating together. They had to make the most out of it.  
"Why is Hyuck still not here?" Renjun asked. Jaemin just shrugged before going back to what he was doing.  
Lee Donghyuck was a mess. He looked himself in the bathroom mirror and he looked dead. His face was pale and lips chapped. It was a good thing that it happened during the weekend and Jeno's parents were not home. If not, he wouldn't be able to go back home because home meant Mark for him.  
He knew Mark would be there soon and that made him sweat profusely.

Hyuck knew it won't solved his problems if he just stood there. He decided to go back to his friends.  
But little did he knew he had to face Mark first.  
He ran down the stairs but halted when he saw the back of the man he had been missing lately. He looked so good even from the back, his legs were extra long and it looked like he lost so much weight overnight. Before he could do anything, Mark turned around and they made eye contact.

Mark was glad that it was Jeno who opened the door for him. He still had time to think of what to say. The moment he went inside the house, Renjun and Jaemin came running to bear hug him. He swear he missed them too. The two days felt like 2 months and he was glad he decided to come over at Jeno's place. Before he could asked where Hyuck was, he felt Someone was watching them, him in particular. He turned around to face the boy he missed for the past two days.  
Hyuck stood there in an oversized t shirt and a jogger pants. He looked so beautiful. Mark saw the eyebags around his eyes, he looked tired but still the brightest and the softest in Mark's eyes.  
All the things he prepared to say to him left his mind and soul. So he just stood there and admired the boy infront of him.

The three boys knew it might be awkward for Mark and Hyuck, they decided to chimed in to lighten up the mood.  
"Come on you two. Let's start the movie, else we cannot go for movie marathon." Jaemin said as he dragged Mark to the couch. Hyuck swear he was gapping his mouth all this while, he mentally scolded himself for making a fool out of himself.  
"Hyuck bring the popcorns and the soda." Renjun said. "Why did you wait for me to do the chores?" Hyuck said that made Renjun laughed cheekily.  
Jeno and Jaemin sat down and chose the most comfortable seat while Renjun and Hyuck fought over which place to seat. They decided to set a mattress so that they could watched the movie sitting on the ground. Mark went to change into something comfortable, when he came back he saw that Jaemin was already nuzzling his face in Jeno's neck. He knew why Hyuck wanted him to come to movie that night. He sat next to Renjun.  
Mark sat at the corner most and Renjun sat next to him. Hyuck sat in between Renjun and Jaemin, while Jeno was at the other corner most. Renjun tried to hard to make Mark and Hyuck talk but they both were stubborn af. They should already knew by then that their secret was not secret anymore. Renjun felt like slapping both of them but he kept his cool.

20 mins into the movie. Mark wanted to talk to Hyuck or atleast to feel him.He was desparate to knew the answer to his questions. Hyuck was no different from Mark, he wanted to tell Mark everything.  
Renjun startled both of them when he got up. "Hyuck i miss my boyfriends, please change the seat with me." He said. He indeed looked like he really missed them.  
Hyuck didn't said anything and changed the seat. Tbvh, Hyuck wanted to sit next to Mark.  
The tension between the two buys were heavy and Renjun swear it even made him uncomfortable. Mark felt restless and squirmed a lot, Hyuck told him not to do that everytime but he did it anyways.  
Hyuck felt the squirming under the blanket.  
He slapped Mark's thigh, making the older boy to look at him squinting his eyes.

Hyuck felt like laughing at his reaction but he chose not to. Mark saw the glint of fondness in Hyuck's eyes.  
It was surreal to have Hyuck next to him, ofc he was his bestfriend and they were together most of the time but it felt different. After admitting his true feelings to himself, Mark wanted to hold Hyuck in his arms and wanted to feel the warmness of the boy. 

The movie was just a BGM to Mark and Hyuck. Hyuck wanted to hold Mark's hand but he was scared. He glanced a look at Renjun, Jeno and Jaemin but they were busy with the movie. Jaemin was sleeping though.  
Hyuck took out his phone and texted Mark. It felt odd to do so for some unknown reason.

Markeboo^^  
4:56pm  
I have something to say.  
/Recieved/

Mark felt the vibration in his pocket and took out to check who it was. He looked at Hyuck after he read the message and whispered, "Me too."  
They signalled and went upstairs to the balcony where Jeno's mother decorated it flowers. The boys spent much time at the balcony when they were young. Hyuck liked flowers and they had always found their way to the balcony.  
The sky was painted red, the birds were flying back to their home and the laughter of kids were heard from the nearby playground.  
Hyuck waited for Mark to say something. They were standing so close that Mark could felt the warmth from the other boy. Mark knew that nothing would worked out if they dragged the situation much longer.  
"Did you...," "I have something.."  
They both said at the same time.  
"You go first." Mark said rubbing his neck.  
"No,you go first." Hyuck looked at him with an unreadable expression.  
"Okay." Mark said. He strolled the time, he looked at Hyuck and stood there for a while. Hyuck wanted to know what he was going to say so he decided to wait if it took all his time.  
"How long have you been in a relationship?" Mark asked finally. He thought he was done being Pathetic about it but he was wrong. He couldn't looked at Hyuck so he acted like it was okay and scanned the area.  
Hyuck thought he was struck by a lightning. His hands started sweating and heart was practically pounding. But before he could say anything in his own defence, Mark continued.  
"It's okay, Hyuck. Sooner or later it was supposed to happen. I just thought you would tell me when you found someone but it's still okay." He took Hyuck's hand in his and said, "Hyuck, i am going to say something very important and please listen to it till the end. I hope you won't freak out."  
Mark gulped. Hyuck was getting cold feet and wanted to run away but Mark's hand was so warm. He told himself beforehand that he would face nomatter what happened without running so he nodded.

"I like you, Hyuck. I told you this so many times, i told you i love you on your birthdays and i always told you that you are important. I was such a fool, you know. I thought it was normal because we are best friends. I always want to make you smile, and most importantly i want to be the only one to make you smile. I saw you at the party with the other guy and i never thought it would break my heart that much. The past few days weren't the best days for me but i am glad it happened that way, it made me realised so many things. Lee Donghyuck, i am not saying this for you to change your mind and i feel so pathetic for realising late." Mark took a breath. His eyes were moist and was on the verge of tearing up, he held it back because he wanted to be strong for Hyuck.

" I like you, Lee Donghyuck. And not as your bestfriend. I like you more than friends." He said it finally.  
Mark said whatever he wanted to say, infact he said more that what he planned to do so.  
All these while, Hyuck looked at Mark and s  
aw the sincerity in his eyes. Mark's confession hit him right at the core. He never thought this would ever happened in his life. It was true that he liked Mark for a long time that it was starting to wear his heart out. Hyuck wanted to be strong but the moment Mark said he wanted to be the one to make him smile, he lost it. He couldn't stopped the tears but Mark was so into his own emotions that he failed to see it.  
Now that his emotions were poured out, Mark felt much lighter. He waited for Hyuck to say something and looked at him with much anticipation. Mark wished he could stop the time. Hyuck looked ethereal, his honey skin was kissed by the already setting sun. The younger boy was infront of him looking Godly, his mouth was slightly opened that showed his confusion. The picture infront of him would forever be engraved in Mark's heart and mind but the fact that Hyuck would never be his made him bitter. He wanted to hug him and tell him sweet nothings. Mark was aware that he was dawning a tough thing on the boy and it pained him but Hyuck needed to know the truth atleast.

He wiped those tears with his hands. Mark stroked his cheeks carefully, scared that he might break the boy.  
"Why are you such a fool, Mark?" Hyuck asked taking Mark's hands in his.  
"Why do have to jump to conclusion by yourself without even asking me?"  
Hyuck hiccuped. His tears were hot on Mark's hand and he couldn't care to stop it.  
"It was a drunk kiss. I am not dating anyone, Mark. I was a coward for not telling you right away when i knew you would think otherwise. I am sorry for not calling right away, i am also sorry for not accompanying you. But you know what, you are more stupid for not getting any of my signals. I wore makeup on your birthday and told i would do that in every important event in my life. I never closed my room's curtain because i wanted to see your room first when i woke up. And i wore makeup at the party because i knew that would be the only thing to make you come." Hyuck said barely whispering the last sentence.  
Mark wasn't able to register whatever Hyuck said. He probably looked like a fool right now but he tried to processed what the boy just said.

"What do you mean, Donghyuck?" He asked with furrowed brows.  
Hyuck sighed, took Mark's hands in his hand and kissed it.  
" I don't like you Mark. It's been so long that it turned into Love now." Hyuck said.  
He saw Mark tearing up but that's what he deserved, Hyuck thought.  
"I love you, Mark Lee." Hyuck said with a smile.  
That was it. Mark cupped Hyuck's face and kissed him.  
The setting sun was their spotlight, the breeze added up to the beauty of the situation and the chuckling of the three boys were the BGM. But the two boys were so into each other that they failed to acknowledge their spectators.  
Hyuck broke their kiss, he closed his eyes and enjoyed Mark's presence there with him.  
Mark felt like he was on the top of the world, having Hyuck near him meant everything for him.  
He traced the moles on Hyuck's cheeks and said, "I am sorry i took so long to come to you. I am scared that i might lose you again." He wetted his lips and looked at Hyuck.  
Being the fast one, Hyuck knew Mark wanted to say something.  
"Say what you want to say." He said. Mark could see the anticipation in Hyuck's eyes and that was all he needed.  
"Will you be my boyfriend?" He asked after like ages. Hyuck chuckled at how nervous the boy looked. He close the distance between them, pecked Mark's lips and said,"Yes, Mark. But you need to make up for taking so long."  
The two of them laughed and the three others joined them.

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by different Markhyuck FMVs.  
> There might be mistakes here and there but kindly accept it since this is my first ever fanfiction.  
> Please leave comments so that i can get ideas from you all.  
> Thank you and hope you enjoy.  
> Xoxo


End file.
